by CJ CADE
Reva sipped her delicious drink and avoided Van's gaze. When he smiled, his hard face creased, his white teeth flashed and his green eyes lit with fun. Impossible to resist. Impossible—at least for her—not to do or say anything to keep him smiling that way.
Except that she was through hanging around, waiting for his smiles. She would learn to give up her foolish infatuation with him, if it was the last thing she did. And it might be, if they did not find a way home... or at least back to their quadrant of the galaxy.
They were lost.
They were lost together, but no matter the temptation, she would not lean on him, and wait for him to save them. She might not be a soldier, but she had a brain of her own. Time to use it to get home, if they could.
Panic beat at the edges of her mind, and sent her heart racing. What if they never found home again? What if they were now doomed to travel the galaxy, or simply live out their lives here—since there was apparently no organized space travel yet.
If they had come back in time... which Van didn't believe was true. He thought this was all a hoax, and she had to admit that was easier to believe than that Octiron's jump machine had somehow managed to jump space and time! That was the stuff of myth.
Except, what if it was true?
"You must have many questions for us," Lacey said, as if reading her mind.
Reva curled her trembling hands in her lap. "I don't understand how we could have traveled not only through space, but through time. How is that even possible?"
"Agreed," Van put in. "A wormhole is merely a connection through folds in space. Time has nothing to do with it, except for the time it takes matter and light to travel."
"You're both correct," Frost said. "However, Magic is a very... special place. With a pull that few other places in the universe can provide."
Reva blinked, puzzled. "So you think the pull was on this end of our jump? The jump pod didn’t malfunction?"
Van frowned. "You're not saying this place is some kind of nexus of power, surely. Those are old legends, used by lazy minds to explain natural phenomena."
Frost raised a brow. "Really? I believe I'll let my wife answer that."
Reva and Van looked to Lacey, who smiled. "Van, you are both right... and wrong. Magic, the town, contains more power than any other that we know of on Earth, but not only because of the place. Because of the inhabitants. We locals may look normal, but most of us are extra-normal."
"What are you, then?" Van asked bluntly, crossing his brawny arms and regarding the woman with clear skepticism. "How are you extra-normal? None of the Earthlings I've encountered are extra-anything."
"Me?" Lacey asked. "Why, I'm a witch."
Reva gasped, excitement surging through her. "You are? I have heard of these in holovid legends. You are real. What can you do?"
"Many things," the other woman said.
"Not here," Frost said, raising one hand, palm out. "Please."
Van snorted. "Oh, that's a fine deflection. She could do something, but she won't, because you've asked her not to."
Incensed at his rudeness, Reva kicked him under the table, and when he flinched, she glared at him.
To her astonishment, instead of frowning back at her, Van's hard face softened into a smile so lazy and sweet she nearly looked overher shoulder to see if some other woman stood behind her. His green eyes drank in her face.
He leaned forward across the corner of the table. As if they were alone, he reached one big, calloused hand to her face and brushed back a lock of hair from her cheek.
Even more strangely, his gaze fell to her mouth. Instead of letting her go, he cupped her cheek with consummate gentleness, and brushed his thumb over her lips. His hand was warm, and his touch so sweet she wanted to lean into his touch, turn her head and taste his skin.
"What?" she whispered, heat flooding her face. "Van, what is it?" Had he forgotten who she was? And that they had an audience?
"Little Reva... I've always known you were lovely," he murmured, his deep voice like rough velvet. "But now, I see it's time I stopped fighting my desire for you."
Then he kissed her. And for a few perfect moments, time stopped.
Van's mouth was so firm and yet so soft, his lips covering hers, nudging and sipping at hers as if she was delectable.
His hand slipped around the back of her neck, and urged her nearer, tipping her head slightly as he tipped his the other way. He tugged her lower lip between his, and then histongue met hers and he tasted her.
And she tasted him, fresh healthy male with traces of salt and ketchup. His scent and heat filled her senses, sending her reeling.
He groaned, a nearly inaudible rumble deep in his broad chest, and his other hand reached for her.
The table rocked, something tumbled over... and cold liquid drenched Reva's legs.
She yanked free of Van's grasp with a yelp, and shoved her chair back, away from him. Gaping at him, she brushed at the melting ice soaking into her leggings. He'd knocked her drink cup over.
Van now regarded her with slumberous gaze, his eyes heavy, cheeks flushed, and his lips damp from hers. Giving her another slow, devastating smile, he put out the tip of his tongue and swept it over his lower lip, as if still tasting her.
Reva's blush burned down over her face, her throat, and into her gaaulites. Heat streaked clear down into her panties, heat that even the ice water couldn't cool.
"Oh, dear," Lacey said regretfully. "That was quite a kiss. Too bad about spilling Reva's drink."
Van froze, then shook himself like a man waking from a deep sleep.
His eyes widened, his smile morphed into a look of horror as he stared at Reva. Then he turned on Lacey, his jaw clenched. "What was that? What the hells just happened?"
The human raised her brows at him. "Why, I'd say that was you giving into your true feelings, commander. Although, you spilled soda all over Reva, so right now, we need to get her some new things to wear. Maybe more becoming, while we're at it."
Frost sighed. "Lacey... stop meddling."
His wife ignored him. "Reva, please come with me. I'll show you your bedroom, and you can change into some dry clothing."
Reva rose and followed the small human from the room. She wanted to change her soaking wet pants... but more than that, she wanted to get away from the look of chagrin on Van's face.
She felt sick, her tasty meal like lead in her stomach. Two things were clear—he hadn't wanted to kiss her, not really. And Lacey did indeed have extra powers.
She followed the other woman, barely registering a cool, quiet room with a big bed, bureau and a comfortable chair.
"Please do not do that witchery again," Reva said. "Commander A'Ralle does not care for me, not that way." Even if, for one glorious moment, he'd made her believe he did.
"Oh, honey," Lacey said, her hand warm on Reva's forearm. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean... but don't be hurt. That man doesn't know what he feels for you. Give him time, you'll be surprised."
"You don't understand," Reva said miserably. "He—he and his friends laughed at me! They said I was like a—a pet, following him, hoping for attention. And he replied that he would never give me that, or anything else."
Lacey shook her head in disgust. "Men. They are so clueless. I suppose he has some silly idea he wants another woman? Here, get those pants off."
Reva nodded, kicking off her sandals and wriggling out of her wet leggings. "Yes. She is a general's daughter, who can aid the advance of his military career. But she's..."
"A bitch?" Lacey put in dryly. "I'm familiar with the breed. And I don't mean my dogs."
Their eyes met, and they snickered together.
Then Lacey handed Reva a pair of soft pants, pink like the first blush of sunrise.
"Here, you'll love these yoga pants. So comfy, and they'll look fabulous on your long legs. Although, your, ah, camo top doesn't really go with them. Better try this one instead."
The knit pants were as soft as a mawwr, and clung to R
eva's hips and legs, the wide waistband settling around her hips below her belly-button. The top was cream, of thin knit that clung to her shoulders and breasts. The hem hit her waist, leaving a band of bare skin.
"There," Lacey said, smiling at her. "Oh, honey, what I'd give to have your tall, super-model figure and face. But, we've gotta work with what we have, right?"
Reva made a polite sound of disagreement. "You are lovely. And I believe your man finds your looks most satisfactory."
"Yes, he surely does. Now, there are more clothes in the bureau, and some care products in the bathroom. You two will share a bathroom."
"Thank you, Lacey," Reva said. "All this... you are most kind to strangers who have landed in your town by accident."
Lacey gave her a last look from the doorway. "Just make sure your soldier causes no trouble here, and we'll call it even, okay?"
'Okay—a friendly agreement', Reva's com translated.
And despite Van's suspicions, she trusted this woman.
Reva nodded. "Okay."
CHAPTER FIVE
When the women were out of the room, Frost gave Van a chilly look. "You are military. An officer of some sort... and do not deny it, it's clear from your air of command, and the chevrons on your uniform."
Van eyed him warily. This alien could see the markings too? "And if I am? I've told you, we are on an exploratory mission only. And we did not mean to land here on your Earth."
The tall alien regarded him steadily. "So you say. Your actions will tell us whether your words are truth. In the meantime, you will be observed."
Van stiffened. "There are spy-bots in this dwelling? I will not stand for such surveillance."
Frost smirked. "If we had need of such things, we would use them. But we don't. You've already seen a demonstration of my wife's powers. She can do much, much more. As can others here."
The hair stood up on the back of Van's neck. He and Reva had landed in a veritable nest of vipers. He'd known this place seemed to peaceful, too bucolic to be real. At least Frost was giving him fair warning.
"Try to harm us, especially Reva'la, and you earn the fury of an Aurelian warrior," Van said. "We are feared across the galaxy."
"I do not doubt you. I've glimpsed into your future. I also happen to know you and your allies employ assassins to do some of your dirty work for you."
Van froze. "What? This is a lie! It is not our way."
Aurelians might go on clandestine missions to take out key leaders of their foul opposition, but to hire another being to do that for them... no! After all, if they found another race more capable of such clandestine attacks, they'd hardly trust them enough to forge an alliance.
"Really? Then let me tell you a story, which took place only last summer, here in Magic."
Reva and Lacey came back into the room, but Van kept his attention focused on Frost as the man told of an alien assassin sent to kill two humans called Grayson Stark and Brynne Polson, and the being E'ea who was sent to save them.
"And you claim these assassins were sent by one of our allies?" Van asked at the end of the tale. "Who?"
Frost shrugged. "I don't claim so—the guardian E'ea did. They were sent by the Taurians. And since the Guardians are beings of light, capable of divining things the rest of us cannot, we had no reason not to trust her."
"Taurians," Van said in disgust. "They are not our allies. They are incapable of loyalty, and so they have proven."
"But they were once your allies."
Van shrugged. "In the Solar Wars, when the Quark O'gren and their kind attempted to subjugate this galaxy. The Aurelians fought alongside many races—the Serpentians, Tygeans, Pangaeans, Indigons, humans and more. The Alliance was for us the lesser of evils, to protect free trade and travel."
"And the Taurians joined this Alliance?"
"So they said publicly. But only a few of our generals reported seeing them in battle for the Alliance. They hid behind our front until the war was won, then slithered out to reclaim their home on Taureus."
"Wait," Reva said, coming to sit at Van's side again. "Van, wasn't General A'Parte one of those who praised the Taurians? An assassination sounds like the kind of plot he and his coterie of malcontents would carry out."
"He's dead, and his cronies with him," Van said, scowling at her. Then he blinked, and his gaze traveled down her body.
Reva's usual clothing consisted of cast-offs from friendly officers' wives and pieces from the stores of uniforms for female warriors.
But now she wore thin, clingy pants and top that clung to her slender body. Against the delicate pink and cream, her hair was a long, silky skein of red-gold, her sun-flushed skin dewy. She looked every bit as attractive as T'Bele... maybe even prettier.
She crossed her arms under her breasts, frowning back at him. "There's talk he's not dead," she said stubbornly. "That he's hiding out on one of our abandoned outposts and operating from there."
"Foolish tales," Van said absently. The snug top clung to every curve of her small, high breasts, and her nipples stood out through the thin knit. His hands wanted to know their shape, and his mouth watered to taste them, suck those firm buds into his mouth.
Heat curled through him again. Was his little Reva a screamer, or more of a moaner, he wondered.
She snapped her fingers in front of his face. "T'Van, listen! What if he's not dead? You know he was always ranting about the rise of big corporations, how they're getting as big as some governments. And his other favorite topic was 'any means necessary to attain our goals' and so on."
Van looked up, his gaze alert once more. "True. LodeStar Corporation, and StarCast Media—he hated them both."
"Right," she nodded. "So he'd hate Octiron even more—they're so much bigger than StarCast."
"And who founded LodeStar?" Frost asked.
"Logan Stark." Van looked to Frost. "Stark... that's the surname of the human you mentioned."
"Yes," Lacey said crisply. "Grayson Stark.And his wife Brynne is now pregnant with their first child."
"And so the Stark dynasty begins," Frost said."Their fortunes will ebb and flow, but in your time, Logan Stark and his brother Joran, and their adopted brother Creed will amass great fortunes, and help settle a new planet."
"Frontiera." Van blew out a hard breath.Everything the man said was true.
Great God beyond, he could hardly believe it was all starting to sound plausible, even probable.
* * *
Reva watched as Van thought about everything they'd discussed.
Van A'Ralle might be stubborn as a Hamor boulder, but he was intelligent—she'd heard Gen A'Renoq himself say so. Of course the general had also added that if Van didn't focus on what was most important, he'd never ascend past platoon commander.
Van was hot-headed, and well-known on Hamor for his practical jokes, such as the time he'd convinced an obnoxious fellow officer that Serpentian fire-whiskey was a new energy drink. The other commander had shown up drunk at troop review, demoted and sent home. No one had missed him, so the top wings didn't try as hard as they might have to pin the prank on anyone. Reva knew the truth because she'd overheard Van's friends snickering about it afterward.
Now, Reva watched as Van's green eyes fired with new possibilities, new versions of old theories.
"What is this Frontiera?" Lacey asked.
"A new, richly habitable planet that our people wanted to settle," he explained. "And Gen A'Parte, had he not died in disgrace, would have headed the new military government there. But bands of roving space pirates got there first. We would have eradicated them, but the IGSF moved in to quell them, and then opened the planet to settlement by all Federation citizens. Our plan to claim the planet by first settlement was no longer viable."
"So this A'Parte might still be alive?" Frost asked. "Did no one see him die?"
"Not really," Van admitted. "His ship blew up when he ordered a reckless attack on the enemy off of Chisol, another of our outposts. Seven warriors died with him. Th
e ship was never recovered."
He shrugged. "I reckon there's a slim chance he could still be alive, but if so, the theory brings up even more questions than it answers. And it doesn't answer the most urgent question for us—how did Reva and I end up here? And how do we get back?"
"You said there are other 'travelers' here." Reva looked to Frost. "How did they come here? Perhaps they can help us."
Van gave her an approving look, and for a sec Reva smiled back, warmed with the pleasure of contributing something to the situation.
"Hmm, that's difficult to say," Lacey said."With a whole set of varying answers, and some big question marks. Even those whose arrival we understand, we can't necessarily replicate."
"That is not helpful." Van ran his hand through his hair, tousling it over his forehead.
Reva's fingers itched to stroke the tumbled strands into place, but she quelled it, rising to pace over to the window and look out.
This was all so confusing—the jump, this place, these beings, so helpful and yet strange with their powers and their claims of an earlier time.
Not to mention her feelings for Van. Part of her wanted to jump him and beg him to make her forget everything but him. Another part wanted to go back to him treating her like a little sister. Because how could she know if his new awareness of her was real, when nothing else seemed real?
This place was so peaceful, so pretty with its multi-colored dwellings, busy shops and all the plants and greenery. Did these humans know what a luxury they had in green grass that was soft enough to walk on, even sit on?
The lane outside was quiet, the lights of other dwellings dotting the twilight landscape.
"It’s growing dark," she said. "Is it safe to be out, or should you get back to your dwellings, to fortify until morning?"
"Oh, Magic is quite safe," Lacey assured her."Folks often stroll the streets after dark."
Reva nodded, and continued to stare out the window. One light was traveling through the darkening sky, sinking at a rapid trajectory. When it disappeared below the horizon she wondered idly how far away it had landed, and what kind of craft it was.
Then she noticed Van's reflection in the window, behind her in the lighted room, and everything else slipped from her mind. He was gazing at her, a bemused half-smile on his handsome face. And his gaze appeared to be on her ass.